Buttonhole-opener



No.-6|2,4|6. Patented Oct. 18, I898. S. F. HARDY.

BUTTONHOLE OPENER.

(Application filed June 10, 1897-) (No Model.)

Vii 7. 25555 [27 van Z01" W 52.7fm]? EH25? WM. W

2322 zzfiarngs STATES SARAI-I F. HARDY, OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA.

BUTTONHOLE-OPEN ER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 612,416, dated October 18, 1898. Application filed June 10,1897. Serial No. 640,141. (No'modeh) I To ctZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, SARAH F. HARDY, of

Minneapolis, I-Iennepin county, Minnesota,

have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Devices for Opening Buttonholes in Starched Articles, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to toilet devices; and the object of the invention is to provide means for opening the button and stud holes in starched articles and rendering the edges of the same soft and flexible preparatory to passing the cuff-button, collar-button, or shirtstud through the same.

The invention consists generally in a middle or handle portion having tapering end portions, one being pointed and the other blunt and flattened and provided with a neck portion substantially round in cross-section and having a shoulder or disk, all as hereinafter described, and particularly pointed out in the claim.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of the specification, Figure 1 is a view of a cuff with the flattened end of the device thrust through one of the buttonholes. Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the buttonholes after the device has been used to open the same. Fig. 3 is a view of the shirt-bosom, showing the pointed end of the device thrust through the upper stud-hole, the lower hole being already opened. Fig. 4 is a plan view of the device. Fig. 5 is a side view of the flattened end of the same. Fig. 6 is a sectional view on the line was of Fig. 4. Fig. 7 is a sectional view on the line y y of Fig. 4.

In the drawings, 2 represents a link-cuff of the ordinary style provided with the usual buttonholes 3, through which the cuff-button is passed to hold the ends of the cuff together. The device for opening the holes may be made of any suitable material-preferably wood, silver, or celluloid, though it may be made of bone or ivory, if desired-and comprises a middle or handle portion .t, to be clasped by the fingers of the operator when in use, and tapering end portions 5 and 6, oneof which terminates in a sharp point 7, provided near the point With a shoulder or flange 8, which limits the movement of the pointed end when the same is thrust through the stud-hole in the shirt-bosom. The opposite end 6 of the device is preferably provided with a flattened portion 9, substantially elliptical in cross section and of sufficient width to separate the stiff starched edge of the buttonhole in a collar or cuff when the device is thrust through the same. Between the flattened portion 9 and the handle portion 4, I provide a neck 10 which is substantially round in cross-section and which serves to form an opening to permit the button to be easily inserted into the hole when the flattened end is thrust through the buttonhole and the device is revolved, and at the same time softens and renders the edges of the same flexible, thereby avoiding all danger of tearing the cuff or collar when the button is placed in position therein. The flattened end 9 is also adapted to be passed through the buttonholes in I the neckband of a shirt, and, if desired, the end may be moistened before being thrust through the hole in the cuff, collar, or neckband, so that the edges of the same will be made soft and flexible to permit the button to be easily inserted.

I have found a device of this kind almost indispensable for use in opening the buttonholes in cuffs when worn with link-buttons, particularly the style made in the form of a dumb-bell, it being almost impossible to force a button of this style through the hole without tearing the cuff, and while I do not confine myself to the exact form of the device shown Ihave found that to produce the best results it should be made substantially in the form heretofore described. If the device is made of metal, the handle portion may be provided with a space for engraving a name,'or it may be otherwise suitably ornamented, thereby forming a very neat and convenient article for the toilet-case.

As shown in Fig. 5, I have provided on the tapering end 6 of the device a shoulder or flange 11, which is adjacent to the neck or cylindrical portion 10. When the flattened part 9 is forced through the buttonhole, the shoulder 11 will engage the surface of the article around the buttonhole, thereby limiting the movement of the tapering end 6 through the hole and preventing the tearing of the cuff.

I do not claim a buttonhole-opener formed with a conical head at one end, as the same is old.

IO tened portion substantially elliptical in crosssection and between it and the handle portion with a neck substantially round in cross-section, substantially as and for the purposes described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set I 5 my hand this 3d day of June, A. D. 1897.

SARAH F. HARDY. In presence of RICHARD PAUL, HELEN M. G. PAUL. 

